


My Life is Arranged

by pinkevilbob



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Arranged Marriage, Alternate Universe - Royalty, F/M, Past Animal Cruelty, later chapter will have animal cruelty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-09
Updated: 2018-12-11
Packaged: 2019-09-14 19:01:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 10,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16918545
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinkevilbob/pseuds/pinkevilbob
Summary: Princess Jester knew nothing of her husband when they were married. Prince Caleb knew that his wife was not as happy as she wanted the world to think. Both knew that neither of them wanted this.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, I already finished this fic a few weeks ago, but I just wasn't ready to edit it until now. This was originally going to be a one shot, but I got to the end of the first chapter and realized that Caleb is nowhere near ready for this evolve into a healthy romantic relationship, so I kept writing til I felt like he was on the path of recovery and being able to one day have a romance. So yeah it's going to be over 10,000 words and it kind of got away from me.
> 
> The title comes from the song "Marry Me" by Emilie Autumn.

Jester rubbed her hands along her dress. Her wedding dress. It was beautiful. All lace with tiny pearl beads. Truly fit for a princess her mother told her. Handmaidens adjusted Jester's veil one more time. It was all beautiful. Pasting on a too big bright smile, it was easy to believe that Jester was a happy bride marrying the boy of her dreams.

Only she wasn't. She was marrying a man she never met and probably did not want this anymore than she did. Jester dreamed of romance. She read Tusk Love a thousand times imagining her Oskar, but she knew it would never happen. She was the princess of Nicodranas and with that came serious responsibilities. 

She wanted to throw off the veil and tiara and run off with the closest handsome stable boy and never look back. But that would break her mother's heart, so Jester kept smiling.

Jester didn’t know much about her future husband. What she knew could be counted on one hand: he was a prince from Rexxentrum, he was the third adopted child of King Trent Ikithon, and all the rumors said that he was odd. Though Jester was fairly certain that the rumors said that she was odd. She wanted to be excited about this, it was her wedding after all, but she just felt nauseous.

There was a knock on the door. “Princess Jester? It’s time to go.” Jester jumped up and shook out her dress only for the handmaidens to smooth it back into place. She took a deep breath. The wedding was to be held at the shrine of the Traveler, Jester’s preferred god. There was talk of having it at the shrine of Bahamut, a more ‘respectable’ god, but she managed to convince her mother to make having it at the Traveler’s shrine part of the marriage contract. It was the only part of her wedding that Jester had a say in. 

Fjord waited outside the shrine for Jester as he had agreed to give her away. They had been childhood friends and Jester would sometimes wonder if they would’ve been more if she hadn’t been the princess. He was tall and handsome next to her as they walked down that aisle. 

Halfway down the aisle, she saw her groom(she couldn’t even remember his name). He was scrawny and pale with bright reddish orange hair and was just a little scruffy. For a moment, their eyes met, his eyes a clear blue, and he managed to become even paler. His eyes quickly darted away and he frowned. Jester’s stomach managed to sink lower and squirm more. Part of her hoped that he could love her and that she could love him, but it didn’t seem likely at this point.

Jester buried down her nerves and smiled again widely. This was going to be a happy occasion even if her groom wasn’t. Fjord gave Jester’s hand a squeeze as he left her at the altar. Directly facing her, the prince made a point to not look at her. So she made a point to be everything she thought a happy bride should look like.

The cleric droned on and on, but to be fair they rarely had this big of an audience and was milking it for all it was worth (also, Jester was fairly certain she heard at least five different innuendos). If Jester wasn’t the bride, she would have sat down before the ceremony was even half way through. Her groom stared at nothing in the distance looking vaguely uncomfortable.

Finally, the cleric got to the vows. Jester was nearly no longer listening by this point. “I do,” she said demurely or at least she thought she was being demure. 

The cleric continued on. “And do you, Caleb Widogast, take this woman?” (Caleb, that was his name, Caleb).

“I do,” the groom said with a thick Zemmnian accent. He looked like he had just done some huge arduous task, but Jester was not going to take it personally. Neither of them wanted this after all.

“You may kiss the bride,” the cleric said.

Caleb managed to reach a new level of paleness and leaned forward. It was a chaste kiss barely even a peck. Jester hardly even felt his lips against hers. And then it was done.

Jester was now a married woman, but she didn’t feel like it.

******

Caleb lied beneath the bed grateful that it was in style in Nicodranas to have the beds high off the floor. It wasn’t that he was hiding from his new wife per say. He preferred to think of it as mentally preparing himself for her. If either of his siblings were there, they would dragged Caleb out by the foot and blocked his way back under the bed. 

Jester was just as he was afraid she would be: a beautiful, charming young woman. One who definitely did not deserve to have to put up with him. This union was to strengthen the relationships of their kingdoms, allowing better trade and access to the ports of Nicodranas, and it was desperately needed Caleb kept reminding himself. If he hadn’t, he would’ve ran away long before now.

Part of Caleb wished that he was still home. Well, not the castle home, but back with his siblings, cat, and best friend. He was actually glad to be gone from the castle and away from his adoptive father. Caleb was just a pawn to the king’s plans and an acceptable sacrifice unlike Eodwulf or Astrid. 

“Um? Is this like a Zemmnian wedding night tradition?” Jester’s head poked beneath the bad.

“What? Oh, no, just gathering my thoughts,” Caleb said inwardly cursing himself. He was hoping to get out before she came in and saw just how messed up he was.

“Did you find them all? Do you need me to look?” she asked excitedly.

Caleb scooted out from under the bed. “No, I believe I got them all, thank you.”

Jester was still beautiful out of her wedding dress. She wore a simple pink dressing gown, and the ribbons and flowers were out of her hair too. But, she still wore that too cheerful expression like she was trying to prove to the world just how happy she could be. “Oh, that’s good. So, um here’s the bed.”

“Yes, there’s the bed.” Caleb could clearly see the bed and wondered why she was pointing it out. And then he realized what she was alluding to and turned beet red. “You don’t have to do this you know.”

“Do what? Sex?” Jester asked. “I’ve read a lot of books and smut. I’m not scared.”

Caleb coughed hard and he could feel his face turning redder. “I meant pretending to be so happy. Being okay with this. Being okay with me.”

Jester stared at him and bit her lip. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to lie to me. I know you probably don’t want this anymore than I do and you’re young and lovely. You shouldn’t have to put up with me.” Caleb waved down at himself. “If I were a pretty girl, I’d be crying right now.”

“I’m not lying. I’m super happy to be married,” she said, but her eyes didn’t show it.

“If you say so,” Caleb said. 

Jester sat on the bed. “Are you not happy with me?”

“It’s not that I’m not happy with you; I’m just not a happy person. I miss my cat,” he muttered to himself.

“You have a cat?” Jester seemed downright exactic about this. “Can I see it?”

Caleb sighed. “Frumpkin’s back in Rexxentrum. The king says that it’s not suitable for a prince to drag a cat everywhere.” The word King Ikkithon used was mangy fleabag, but Caleb was not going to repeat that. Frumpkin was the best cat and not even slightly mangy. It was Frumpkin who comforted Caleb on nights where he couldn’t sleep for nightmares. Astrid would say Caleb sensitive, Eodwulf called him fragile, and, when the king was being generous, Caleb was weak.

“Oh.” Jeter sunk down on the bed pouting. “Do you miss Rexxentrum?”

Caleb shook his head. “Not really. I spent most of my time in the castle reading.” He decided it was best to leave out that he spent most of his time in the basement avoiding people. Most people thought it wa something to pity rather than an intelligent decision. “I miss my siblings and Frumpkin and Nott.”

“Nott?”

“She’s my best friend.” Outside of his siblings, she was his only friend, but even Caleb knew how pathetic that was. She was merely a servant, but she was patient with him and was excited when he told her about a new book he discovered. “Oh and the library.” Caleb rarely set foot in the library, but Nott was more than willing to go there gathering books for Caleb.

Jester sat back up. “We have a library!”

“You do?” It was silly how Caleb was so excited over a library. Nearly every castle had a library, so it shouldn’t have been a surprise. But this was a new library for Caleb, which meant there were probably books he had never read before.

“Do you want to go see it?” Jester asked. 

Caleb nodded. “Of course.”

“Okay, let’s go!” Jester jumped up and off the bed.

“Wait, now?”

Jester smiled. “Yes! It will make it all mysterious and spooky like it’s a secret mission.”

Caleb couldn’t help but smile at this. “Okay.”

“But we’re going to be super quiet and stealthy about this.” She mimed zipping her lips closed and went to the door. Caleb mimicked her gesture and followed her.

Creeping down the hallways and corridors reminded Caleb of when he, Astrid, and Eodwulf first moved into the Rexxentrum castle and would sneak out to explore their new home. But that was ages ago, Astrid and Eodwulf had matured beyond that sort of thing. A laugh escaped Caleb when Jester dragged him into an alcove to avoid an imagined guard. Finally, they made it the library.

It was a similar size to the one back in Rexxentrum, but this one was more spread out rather than tall. Caleb could tell that Jester was watching him as he went through the rows of books soaking it all in, but he didn’t care; Caleb was surrounded by books. Plenty of the books were ones he’d never seen before and there were a few that he had been longing to read. Eventually he had gathered a modest pile of books.

“Caleb,” Jester hissed, “I need your help.” She was staring at a book on the top shelf. “I can’t reach it.”

Caleb frowned.”I can try, but I’m not that much taller than you.” He stretched as much as he could, but he still couldn’t reach it. Suddenly he felt hands around his waist and Caleb was lifted up in the air. A yelp may have echoed in the library, but Caleb would never admit it. After gathering his composure, Caleb grabbed the book for Jester.

“Thank you,” Jester said gleefully taking the book from Caleb. “It’s smut!”

Caleb stared at her for a moment. “...Congratulations.”

Jester cackled a giggle and ran to the door. “Do you have enough books?”

Caleb looked at his pile of books and considered it. There were eight of them, so they should last him a couple of days. “For now, yes.”

They headed back to their room in silence until Caleb heard something down the hall. A sound he was familiar with. He stopped Jester. “There’s an unhappy cat nearby.” Caleb headed towards where the ticked off meowing was coming from. Soon he came to a closed door.

“That’s just a closet,” Jester said. “There shouldn’t be any cats in there.”

Caleb opened up the door and out came a spotted cat. A very familiar cat. “Frumpkin?” he asked as the cat rubbed against his leg purring. It really was Frumpkin. “But, what are you doing here?”

“I might have something to do with that,” a familiar voice said from in the closet. Nott popped her head out.

Caleb rubbed his eyes to make sure he was seeing things correctly. But, no, his best friend and cat really were in Nicodranas. “You’re supposed to be in Rexxentrum.” The king made it clear that Caleb was not to take any of the servants from the palace.

Nott bit her lip. “Would you believe that I got a little lost?”

Caleb tried to frown at her, but just couldn’t find it in him to be mad at her and ruffled her hair instead. “The king’s going to be furious if he finds out about this.”

“Astrid said that he wouldn’t even notice,” Nott said. “And Eodwulf said that you can’t be expected to function without Frumpkin anyways, so I had to bring him with me.” Caleb’s heart swelled. Even when he’d been sent away his siblings still had his back.

“Is this your friend?” Jester asked from behind Caleb.

Caleb plucked up Nott and held her up to Jester. “This is Nott.”

Nott waved her fingers at Jester. “Hello.”

“She’s so cute and tiny!” Jester gasped. “You didn’t say you had such a cute friend.”

Caleb shrugged. “I didn’t think it was important. Nott this is Jester, my, erm, wife.” It felt weird to say out loud. 

“Hmmmm. What are your plans for Caleb? Are you going to make him an honest man?” Nott asked. Caleb groaned and rolled his eyes. “He’s a good boy, so I can’t have just any girl hurting him.”

“I don’t want to hurt him,” Jester said.

“Good, cause he’s very sensitive and you need to be extra nice to him.”

Caleb could feel his face turning red again, and he set Nott back on the ground and he picked up Frumpkin instead. “Perhaps we shouldn’t be having this conversation out here where we can get caught.”

"Oh, right," Jester said smiling conspiratorially. She led them back towards the room. "Just one more hallway." And of course, that was when they ran smack dab into a guard.

Caleb seized up. His heart was beating in his ears. Nott hid behind his leg and clutched Frumpkin to her chest. He quickly tried to think of an excuse, any excuse for them, but all he had was nothing.

"Princess?" the guard asked.

"Oh, hi Bryce," Jester said.

The guard looked down at her. "Bit late for a stroll isn't it?"

"Well, yes, but Caleb really really wanted to see the library, so we couldn't wait till the morning."

The guard chuckled and shook their head. "If you say so, but you probably should go back to bed."

"Ok," Jester said with a wave. "Come on you two."

Caleb remained still. "You weren't in trouble?"

"Well, no. This is my house. It'd be pretty silly if I wasn't allowed to walk around my own house."

"Right, silly," Caleb said. If he had been caught out in the middle of the night, he'd been locked in his room again.

Nott raised her hand. "Then why were we sneaking around?"

"Because it's funner that way." Jester smiled. This time it was real.

"Um, where do I go?" Nott asked when they arrived at the princess's room. No, it was Caleb's room too now. He wasn't certain how eager he was to go back in even with an arm full of books.

Jester tapped her finger to her chin with her finger. "You can join us! It will be like a slumber party."

"A slumber party?"

Jester nodded excitedly. "Yeah! A sleepover! It's when you and all your friends gather in one room and pretend to sleep, but really you're just playing all night long. It's a lot of fun!"

The description reminded Caleb of the first nights in the Rexxentrum castle when him and his siblings would sneak into each other's rooms late at night. This went on until the king found out about it and put a stop to it. "Sounds nice."

Nott nodded so hard her hair flew about. "Yeah." Her face quickly fell. "But, I probably shouldn't be here being a servant and all. Also it is your wedding night."

Caleb coughed so hard Jester patted his back. "It's okay," Jester said. "I'm always ready for a slumber party. And you can tell me all sorts of embarrassing stories about my husband."

"I do have some good ones," Nott said rubbing her chin.

Caleb groaned as they went into the room. Fortunately the bed was a large one and easily fitted them all and Frumpkin. He sat in the corner reading while Nott and Jester gossiped excitedly.  
It was pleasant. He hadn't expected anything to be pleasant in Nicodranas. The best he had hoped for was to not hate his wife and to just live in mild discomfort. But, he knew that the late night library trips and slumber parties weren’t going to last forever. Eventually Jester was going to remember what husbands and wives were supposed to do.

It wasn’t that he didn’t know what to do; the day before Caleb left Eodwulf gave him a long explanation of what women liked, how to treat his future wife properly, and the best ways to, ahem, ‘pleasure’ his wife(Caleb’s last time alone with Astrid was spent with her holding him as he cried). But that didn’t mean that Caleb was exactly eager for it and he was fairly certain neither was Jester. 

This marriage wasn’t going to work as a romance, he knew that already, but a friendship? He could handle a friendship.


	2. Chapter 2

It was funny how being married to Prince Caleb was basically like not being married at all, but only now she had a cat, two if she included Frumpkin. Caleb was standoffish, finicky, and liked to hide under the bed. If Jester tried to be affectionate, he’d get uncomfortable, but Caleb could be incredibly sweet if he starts it. Sometimes it would keep Jester off her balance and made her wonder if her romance novels were all made up.

She frowned down at Tusk Love. It made love sound so easy to get, but Jester was starting to think that shewould never find it. Something patted her head. Jester looked up to see Caleb standing above her. “What are you reading?”

“Tusk Love,” she said. 

"Are you nearly done with it?" he asked

Jester raised an eyebrow. "Are you asking because you want to read it or because if I'm done we'd need to go to the library again?"

Caleb shrugged. "Both." Jester learned quickly that the most important things to Caleb were books and cats. She also learned that he refused to go anywhere in the castle by himself. He was always with her or Nott(Nott quickly obtained a job in the castle and seemed to be fitting in very well, which sadly could not be said about Caleb). Caleb had a prefect sense of direction and could find the way to their goal faster than Jester could, but if Jester suggested that Caleb could go by himself, he would sulk.

Jester considered asking her mother on what to do with Caleb, but it felt like Jester was just complaining about her mother's choice of husbands for her. And Caleb was nice and he never was violent or anything and Jester had read about how cruel older husbands could be, so really she was lucky. But sometimes she wished she had a normal husband and not a shadow.

"Okay," Jester said. "I've already read this one 12 times before cause it's really good, but we can get you more books too."

Caleb grinned at this and tried to pull her up despite his skinniness. He wasn't successful but it was funny to watch him try. They went to the library together again with Caleb following close behind her and ducking down whenever someone else walked by. Jester bit her tongue from commenting. She had already learned that questions like that only made him withdraw more. Finally they got to the library and he quickly searched the shelves.

"So, what's up with him?"Jjester's favorite librarian Beau asked. Well, technically in name Beau was a librarian, but she was more often found outside getting into fists fights with the stable hands and rumor said that she was an underground thief lord, but most of those rumors came from Beau herself. "He's not hurting you or anything is he? Cause if he is." Beau cracked her knuckles.

Jester giggled and shook her head. "No, he's nice enough. But all he does is read."

Beau groaned. "Bookworms are the worst. If you need an illicit tryst, I can hook you up you know."

"Beau!" Jester laughed shoving her friend. "I don't think I need that. At least not yet."

"Really though," Beau said. "Are you happy?"

Jester gave her biggest brightest smile possible. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Beau hooked her arm around Jester's head and gave her noogie. "Good to hear. Now, can you please make a loud distraction so I can escape? I've been here for three whole hours."

Jester smiled devilishly. “Of course.” She was always ready to make a little mischief or maybe even a lot of mischief. Luckily she liked to carry some firecrackers in her pocket just in case(as a follower of the Traveler, Jester believed in being prepared for trouble or at least causing trouble). Hiding in a forgotten corner, Jester set off the crackers letting them go off in all sorts of delightful bangs. What wasn’t so delightful was the scream that followed the bangs.

The scream came from across the library and Jester ran towards it. She skidded to a stop when she saw a group of librarians gathered at the end of an aisle. Jester pushed her way through the crowd to see the source of the scream. Huddled in the corner was Caleb, his eyes wide open with fear and his hands covering his ears. He shook and shivered like the last leaf of fall. 

Jester's heart broke. All she wanted to do was cause a little mischief, not hurt anyone. She broke away from the crowd and approached her husband. Caleb flinched away from her and shook even more. Behind her the librarians whispered to one another. She threw a sharp stare at them before turning back to Caleb. "Caleb," she whispered. He only flinched again. "Oh, Caleb."

Caleb just trembled for a moment before staring over her shoulder. Jester turned around to see Nott standing there. The small servant had a sad look of her face. "Cay, come on Cay. I'm here," she said in her soft scratchy voice. Now he seemed to be responsive and relaxed. Nott approached and gently grabbed his hand. "Come along Caleb. Let's go find Frumpkin."

Jester followed after Nott. "What happened? There was a loud noise and he just screamed." She left out the fact that she was the one responsible for the noise in the first place.

"Caleb's just," Nott paused, "Caleb's Caleb. And he just does this sometimes. He'll get better soon, so you don't need to worry about him."

Jester bit her lip. This just made her worry all the more. "Are you sure? Is there anything I can do to help him?"

Nott shook her head. "He prefers to not have an audience during his episodes."

"Oh," Jester said not certain on what she should or could do. So she did the only thing she could do when the world was more than she knew what to do with.

****

Caleb's head felt like cotton and so did his mouth. He was under the bed, but that was not necessarily a strange thing for him. He could hear humming above him. It was too on key to be Nott(music was never one of her talents). 

He wasn't curious enough though to poke his head out though. It was most likely Jester. She had been in the library at the time of his episode unfortunately. Caleb had hoped that she would never have to witness one, but it was too late for that. A loud groan escaped his lips. The humming stopped. "Are you okay under there?" asked a voice that was not Jester's or Nott's.

Caleb wanted to crawl in deeper, but there was no deeper to crawl into. "I'm fine," Caleb said. He just had to convince himself of that. 

"That's good to hear. Would you like to come out from under the bed?" The voice was that of a woman's, but Caleb wasn't sure if he recognized it though. He'd only been in the castle for a couple of weeks and all the new people blended together.

Caleb shook his head and then realized that she couldn't seen him. "A few more minutes, please."

"Of course." There was a hint of a laugh in her voice but she wasn't making fun of him, so Caleb was willing to forgive it. 

He took a minute just to breathe. Usually Nott would stay with him, but she was nowhere to be seen. Finally, Caleb got out from under the bed and looked up to see who was waiting for him and went pale. It was Jester's mother, the Queen. "Your Majesty! I'm sorry for making you wait."

"Quite alright," she said. She was beautiful and graceful, and Caleb knew he didn't deserve to stand in her presence. "Oh, you have a little something in your hair." Caleb brushed at his hair attempting to banish any dust bunnies there. "There's still something there. Here, I'll take care of it, sit down." She gestured at the chair he stood beside her.

Caleb sat down on the floor in front of the chair. The Queen paused for a moment before sitting in the chair herself. Her fingers ran through his hair slowly and she began to hum again. It was a different song than what she was humming earlier. The earlier one was a lively tune, but this one sounded more like a lullaby. He could feel the care she put into cleaning his hair and putting it back into order. Closing his eyes, it was like he was still a child in the home of his first parents. He didn't want to open his eyes ever and banish that feeling. 

She stopped brushing out his hair but kept humming. Leaning into her leg, Caleb kept his eyes closed. The Queen was kinder than he could have imagined. "Your Majesty," Caleb said. Queen Marion stopped humming and the spell of innocence was broken. "Don't trust the king."

"Your father?"

Caleb nodded. "You can't trust him. Please remember that."

"I will, dear. Now, do you want to talk about what is bothering you?" she asked.

"No."

"Alright." The queen went back to brushing out his hair and humming.

*****

When Jester came into their room, Caleb was curled up on the floor asleep. She smiled and scooped him up. He stirred a little but settled back into her arms. "Thank you, Astrid," he muttered. Jester stilled for a moment and then went back to tucking him in. It was a relief that she was right in thinking that her mom could help him. Her mom was really good at calming people.

"Astrid," Caleb said not even opening an eye. "It's not safe back home. You should stay in Nicodranas. Father's not here."

Jester frowned. Just what was it like in Rexxentrum?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So personally the lullabye I have Jester's mom sing is the beginning of "Once Upon Another Time' by Sara Bareilles.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So remember how this was supposed to be a one-shot? Yeah this is where this starts to get carried away and plot rears its ugly head.

Jester's marriage bed was a very active one, just not in the way that she had expected. For one thing they did leave the light on at night but that was because it made it easier to read in bed, which Jester never complained about as she never was a big fan of the dark and it let her draw late into the night. Also, more often than not, Nott would join them. There was plenty of late nights filled with talking and giggling with the occasional interruption of Caleb reading a passage from whatever book he was reading. Caleb read everything from children's fairy tales to large dry exhortations on why wheat was better than rye(Caleb scoffed loudly at that one).

That night, Nott chose to stay in her own room explaining that she needed to wake up early the next morning, so it was just Jester and Caleb. There was always a moment of awkwardness in the start of the night where they would stare at each other wondering if maybe they should do something more that night. Caleb was the one to break eye contact and grabbed a book. He got onto his hands and knees and started to go under the bed and then froze. "Jester," he said tensely. "Can you please leave the room?"

"What? Why?" Jester said.

"No reason, just please leave the room." Caleb sounded annoyed.

Jester rolled her eyes and dropped to the floor next to him. There was already someone else under the bed. She screamed and punched the intruder in the face. After that, Jester took in the intruders daggers and the dangerous glare on their face. Jester punched them again as Caleb grabbed her arm and tried to pull her back. The intruder slid forward and swiped at Caleb with their nasty looking blade. 

Jester jumped to her feet and stood in between the intruder, no, the assassin and her husband. She looked for anything that could be used as a weapon and there was nothing within reach, so she readied another punch silently thanking Beau for teaching her how to fight. "Who are you?" Jester demanded. The assassin remained silent and lunged at Caleb. Caleb just stood there not moving like he had already accepted this as his inevitable fate. The princess tackled the assassin and they tumbled on the carpet. This seemed to wake up Caleb as he grabbed a fire poker and bashed it over the assassin's head.

The assassin slumped on the ground unconscious. The doors burst open behind them and the guards rushed in. "What happened?" Bryce asked.

"Assassin," Caleb said simply. "Shouldn't be dead. You can question them." And with that he grabbed his cat and climbed under the bed.

"We should probably check for more assassins," Bryce said weakly just staring at where Caleb disappeared to.

Caleb sighed. "There's no more assassins under here. You can check for them elsewhere."

"Do you know what they were after?" Bryce asked Jester.

Jester shook her head. "I don't know. They were hiding under the bed."

"They were after me. They never attacked Jester even though she was the one fighting back. You'll need to look into anyone wanting to cause a fight between Rexxentrum and Nicodranas," Caleb said. "

"Maybe they were just trying to get you to get at the king," Jester suggested.

Caleb laughed dryly from under the bed. “Not likely. The king would be thanking them for doing him a favor. This is most likely a political matter. Watch, there's going to be all sorts of obvious clues about Nicodranas paying for the assassin."

Jester frowned. She read about this sort of thing happening in books with exciting adventures in them, but she never expected such things to happen in real life. Shaking she sat down on the bed as the guards continued to search the room. "But we wouldn't do that."

"Well, you and the queen wouldn't, but there may be somebody in your country who would, but there's no real reason to dispose of me within this country unless you have a crazed and jealous former lover."

"I don't have any former lovers let alone a crazed or jealous one," Jester said.

“What even makes you think they were paid for this?” Bryce asked.

Caleb poked his head out from under the bed. “If I somehow managed to be significant enough to anyone for them to kill me, I’d be impressed. Though it may be some rebel group who decided to set their sights incredibly low.”

“We can’t overlook any possibility,” said Bryce.

Caleb went back further under the bed without a word. The guards finished their search and Bryce posted a guard at the door just in case while they went to go alert the Queen.

“Caleb?” Jester asked. “Can I join you under the bed?”

There was a long moment of silence. “You’d like to join me?”

“If that’s okay?”

“I guess you can,” Caleb said after a moment.

Jester scooted in under the bed. It was a tight squeeze and she could barely move her arms. “You told me to leave the room when you found the assassin. Why?”

“I didn’t want see you get hurt.”

“And what about you?” Jester asked. She could feel him shrug next to her.

“I’m okay now.”

Jester pouted at him even if he couldn’t see her. “But that’s only because I was here. If I had listened to you, you’d be dead right now.”

“And you’d then could get a new husband,” Caleb said. “Hmm, you still could. We can fake my death, I disappear and you can marry whoever you chose.”

“That’s not funny. Do you hate me that much?”

“I don’t hate you at all which is why I’m offering you an escape. You don’t really want to stay under the bed forever do you?” He shifted next to her. “But it is an idea. If I’m believed to be dead, we may be able to lure whoever it was that hired the assassin.”

Jester looked over to where Caleb was even though she could barely see him. “How do you even read down here?”

“Practice. My room in Rexxentrum was not well lit, but I preferred it that way,” he said.

“Do you want me to keep the lights here low?”

“No, it’s fine. Probably better for my eyes anyways. Thank you by the way.”

“For what?”

“For saving me,” Caleb said. “And for coming down here with me. No one’s ever done that before.”

Jester shrugged. “There was no way I was going to let you die. And I wanted to know why you like being under the bed so much. Though I still don’t get, there’s no room to move down here.”

“That’s part of what I like. I guess it’s that and how quiet it is. No one else is here. Well, except for you now,” Caleb said. “But it still feels safe even with you.”

“Safe? Caleb what is Rexxentrum like?”

Caleb went into a guidebook description of Rexxentrum right down to the major imports and exports.

Jester sighed. “No, I meant what was living in the castle like for you?”

“Ah, very boring I’m afraid. I spent most of my days reading. My siblings were very important so they were kept busy, but they would often visit me. Nott would bring me books.”

“Sounds super lonely.”

Caleb coughed lightly. “I, ah, preferred to be alone. I never did well with crowds even before I was adopted.”

“You remember before you were adopted?”

“I was 13 at the time. My adoptive siblings and I grew up in the same village. Soldiers came in one night and destroyed it. Eodwulf, Astrid, and I were the only survivors and the king took us in. So yes I remember my life before Rexxentrum.”

Jester leaned into Caleb. “I’m sorry.”

“No need to be. Nicodranas had nothing to do with it and you would have been very young when it happened.” Caleb shifted next Jester. “Can you leave now? I want to be here alone for a little bit.”

“Of course.” She paused for a moment and then kissed his cheek. “Goodnight Caleb.”

******

It was an hour before Captain Bryce returned with Queen Marion, but Caleb was still under the bed. He wanted to stay down there, but it was wrong to hide from the Queen, so he crawled out from under the bed. Jester smiled encouragingly at him, so maybe it wasn't so bad to be out.

Bryce reported that the guards had found the assassin’s hideout but no evidence of a partner. What they did find a bunch of sloppy proof that it was someone with in the Nicodranas government that ordered the hit. Caleb shrunk down in his chair as Jester and Bryce stared at him.

“Was it planted?” Jester asked still stealing glances at Caleb.

“Too early to say. Though it’s a bit too obvious to take at face value, but it still needs to be looked into,” Bryce said. “The assassin’s still unconscious, so interrogation will have to wait.”

“I’m surprised your torturer would wait,” Caleb said. In Rexxentrum, the interrogator would already have all the assassin’s allies and some of their fingers too.

Jester stared at him uncomfortably. “Why would we have a torturer?”

“It was a joke,” he muttered.

Bryce went back to describing the evidence that they found in the hideout. Caleb tried to focus, but it was all too predictable. It was exactly what he'd do if he was told to frame another country. Though Caleb would like to think that he would be more subtle about it.

Eventually they got to the part that Caleb was actually interested in; what they were going to do next. There were more investigations to follow through with, but he was going to be no use for that. He raised his hand. "We'll need to let whoever did this think they succeeded," Caleb said. "Let them think I died."

The Queen looked him over. "Isn't it a bit late for that?"

"It has been less than an hour, so only if the assassin had to show a signal at a precise time, but the operation could have easily been delayed due to the timing be wrong. We can make a show of announcing my death and hide me in some forgotten basement," Caleb said.

Bryce rubbed their chin. "Would their employer fall for it, though?"

"Even if they didn't, they'd have to send someone to confirm one way or another," Caleb said. "That's what anyone would do."

"If they have spies, they would know something's off in the palace, even if they don't know you're still alive. They be sure to notice if servants go to one location that previously no one went," Bryce said. "We wouldn't be able to keep an eye on you or send you word or food."

Caleb had been without those things before, but he thought it was best not to mention it. H rubbed his chin. "Then you put a bag on my head and send me to the dungeon as some unknown monster that did horrible crimes to the kingdom."

Jester looked at him horrified. "You can't go to the dungeon!"

"Yes, I can. If it's what it takes for the truth to come out," Caleb said, "I'm willing to submit myself to what is necessary for the kingdom." He looked directly at the Queen.

"You're loyalty is noted and found a little concerning," Queen Marion said.

Jester fumed next to him. "That's not fair! We can't send an innocent person to the dungeon. There's hidden passages! I used to play in them all the time. He can hide in one of those."

The Queen seemed to be set at ease by this suggestion. "That would be much more reasonable."

"I suppose so," Caleb said.

"By your leave, Your Majesty, I will put everything into effect," Bryce said. The Queen nodded at them and they left.

Queen Marion then turned to Caleb. "You are aware that you will be in what might as well be solitary confinement? In order to make this plan work, you will have no visitors except for the occasional servant."

"It will be no bother," Caleb said. "I'm familiar with solitude."

Jester frowned at him. "It's still not fair." She then gave him a tight hug and went off to sulk.

He stared after her. What she was to him he was not certain. He just knew that he would do whatever it took to find out who was behind this plot before Jester became a victim of it.


	4. Chapter 4

Mourning was no fun. All of Jester’s clothes were black and she had to stay inside(though she did already stay inside a lot more since marrying Caleb, but that was by choice). She had to fake being sad, but that was easy. Jester really did miss Caleb. Over the past month, he had become a good friend. It was also weird to act like someone was dead when she knew he was totally alive. 

The hardest part was Nott. It was decided that no one outside of a select few were to know that Caleb was alive and that included Nott. Caleb fought it at first, but he had to admit that she was completely incapable of keeping a secret. Nott was inconsolable and was given the week off from her duties. Jester decided to let Nott stay with her and the servant spent most of her time taking care of Frumpkin. She was slowly coming to acceptance, but it was obvious how hard of a blow it was for Nott. 

Jester was just glad that Caleb wasn’t around to see how Nott was doing. It would’ve probably made pretending to be dead harder.

****  
Being dead was boring, Caleb discovered. True, every time someone came in with news or a meal, they would also bring in a book, but Caleb would typically finish each one within an hour. And none of those checking on Caleb were Jester or Nott or Frumpkin. Caleb completely understood and expected missing Nott and Frumpkin, but missing Jester caught him completely by surprise. He knew he liked Jester well enough, but he wasn’t expecting his cot to feel so empty by himself. Or to start reading something out loud because he thought Jester would like it only to find that she wasn’t there. Or the small heartache he’d feel when he thought about her. It was very confusing.

Caleb welcomed the distraction that Bryce’s visit brought, though the guard captain was even more solemn than usual. “Sir, we found out who was behind the assassination attempt,” they said. “I’m afraid it’s bad news.”

“Rexxentrum?” Caleb asked. It was high on his list of possibilities. The king could easily declare war on Nicodranas over his son’s death, and if the war was successful, then have direct access to the ports without having to pay any additional taxes. The likelihood of Rexxentrum losing was low, so only a fool would not go for it and Caleb’s adoptive father was not a fool.

The guard paled. “Yes sir. We’re uncertain if the king is involved.”

“Oh, he is,” Caleb said. “You just won’t be able to pin it on him.”

“You’re taking this surprisingly well.”

Caleb shrugged. “The king only does what he thinks will benefit the most people and does not believe that emotions should get in the way of that.” Also, Caleb knew that King Ikithon was a complete bastard for years.

Bryce frowned at this, but they didn’t say anything. “Well, I am sorry this is all the news I have for you. Is there anything that you need here?”

“Tell me, how is Jester doing?” 

“The princess is playing the role of a grieving widow just fine.”

“But how is she?” Caleb asked.

Bryce gave him a soft smile. “She misses you and hopes that this will be over soon.”

Caleb’s heart sped up and he could feel his ears going red. “Er, tell her I feel the same.”

“Of course.” And there was that knowing smile. Caleb wished he knew what that smile did.

***

“The people from Rexxentrum will be here soon,” Nott said. She was in the dark about everything Caleb being still alive to the fact that their old home was responsible for his supposed death. Jester felt guilty about it, but she was told that if Nott knew anything it would just put her in danger, which Jester refused to risk. So for now, Nott acted as Jester’s personal servant. “You’re supposed to be there to receive them.”

Jester frowned. Pretending to be nice to the people who ordered Caleb’s death was the last thing she wanted to do, but it was all part of the plan and she just had to play her part in it. Playing pretend was all she was good for. Shaking the doubts out of her head, Jester pasted a big smile on her face. “Oh, right. Thank you Nott.” She stopped herself from ruffling Nott’s hair. It felt like something reserved for Caleb. 

Nott accompanied her to the reception hall. It was a solemn affair with not a color to be seen unless black counted as a color. Jester sat next to her mother’s throne when the Rexxentrum party entered. They were led by a tall handsome woman. Her face was like a mask of stone, but there was a sadness underneath it, Jester could tell.

The tall woman bowed. “Your Majesty, I’m Princess Astrid of Rexxentrum. My father has sent me to retrieve my brother’s body and to get to the bottom of what happened to him.”

“Our guard has already begun an investigation on the matter,” the Queen said. “And your brother’s funeral will be held tomorrow.”

“With humblest apologies, your Majesty, that will not be necessary. Caleb deserves to be buried in his home.” Astrid’s voice hitched at the mention of Caleb, but she continued on. “The King was very firm that I was not to return without him.”

“We’ve postponed the funeral for as long as we could. I’m afraid that the body will not last the trip.”

Astrid clutched her sword’s handle tightly. “‘The body’ is my brother and I deserve to take him home.”

“I meant no offense,” the Queen said gently.

“Well, offense was given,” Astrid said tersely. A groan came from behind Jester, but there was only the wall behind her. A wall that held a hidden passage. Caleb must have been watching it all in hiding.

The Queen stiffened. “I understand that you are grieving, young lady, but that does not give you the right to issue any demand you wish.”

Jester could hear Astrid’s teeth grinding. This was becoming a disaster faster than Jester could’ve predicted. “You must’ve cared about Caleb a lot,” she said. “I care about him too. I know I don’t know him as well as you did, but I liked him anyways. He was weird and funny.”

“He was,” Astrid said smiling sadly. “But, that does not change the fact that we are taking his body back with us and will find who is responsible for his death.”

“Of course,” Jester said. “We’ll prepare him to leave as soon as possible and you will have everything we know about the assassination attempt. Captain Bryce?”

Bryce stepped forward. “Of course, your highness.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Astrid said. “I intend to conduct our investigation myself.” She turned and left without another word.

***

Caleb groaned into his hands. Of course, it was Astrid that was sent. For as gentle as she was with Caleb, she had the delicacy of a mallet with everything else. But, he had to admit that she was good at getting results. Maybe she could even prove that the king was behind the assassination. He laughed at the thought. There was no chance of the king sending Astrid if he thought she stood even half a chance of uncovering anything that substantial.

It hurt though to see her so heartbroken. Part of Caleb was tempted to find a way to let her know that he was there that he was still alive and in the castle. But that would just show his hand to the Rexxentrum party and there was bound to be at least one spy amongst them. Quite possibly all of them were. Except for Astrid of course. Caleb’s adoptive father may have been terrible, but his siblings were his family, and if they didn’t care, then they wouldn’t have sent Nott and Frumpkin to him. 

This just made it harder to remain hidden. A secret door in the wall opened behind him. It was Jester. “What are you doing here?” he hissed.

“I needed to check on you,” Jester said. “I’ve been worried.”

“I’m fine. It’s mind numbly boring in here, but they send me 3 meals a days and there’s a cot, so I’m being well taken care of.”

Jester pouted at him. “That sounds like you’re in a prison.”

“Nicest prison I’ve ever seen then,” Caleb said. “As you can see, I’m well and in one piece. Now go before anyone becomes suspicious of where you went to.”

“Caleb? Are you mad at me?”

Caleb froze and then panicked. “What? I could never be mad at you.”

“Then why are you trying to get rid of me?” she asked.

“Because we are in the middle of a delicate situation that could easily turn into a war, which I refuse to allow.” That and who knew what dangers could happen to Jester if anyone from Rexxentrum was suspicious of her. “I care about my country too much to let that happen.”

Jester frowned. “But everyone says that if we fought Rexxentrum, you would win.”

“That doesn’t mean it would be a good war or a good thing. This will lead down a terrible path, I believe. The king will not be satisfied.” Caleb sighed. Even in Nicodranas he could not be rid of the king.

“Will you be okay?” Jester asked.

Caleb smiled at her sadly. “Not likely, but thank you for your concern.” He ruffled her hair. “Now, go. They’re probably missing you out there.”

“There’s people who miss you out there too,” she said right before climbing out. It probably wasn’t true, but it was nice of her to say.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Originally I was going to combine this with the next chapter, but then I realized that it would make the next chapter too long, so here's a mini chapter. I should post the next chapter tomorrow.

The reception hall was full of tension. Astrid had finished her investigation and insisted on speaking to the Queen. Her hand never left the hilt of her sword once. Jester heard a groan from the wall. Caleb was watching again. 

Astrid glared at everyone in the hall. “I’ve concluded my investigation. And I can’t say I’m happy with what I found.”

“And what did you find?” the Queen asked.

“That you are hiding something,” Astrid said. “Where is my brother’s body?”

Jester sat forward. “It’s being prepared for the journey to Rexxentrum.”

“Stop lying to me!” Astrid snarled. “No one has seen the body! No one!’ She drew her sword. “Where are you hiding it?! Where is my brother?!” Astrid pointed her sword directly at Jester’s throat. 

Jester didn’t even dare to breathe. The sword just barely brushed against her skin and she could tell just how sharp it was.

Stone shifted behind Jester. “And once again, you resort to dramatics. Can’t say I’m surprised,” Caleb said.

“You.” Astrid dropped her sword.

“Ja, me,” Caleb said stepping forward. “I had hoped to stay hidden until we’d proven who was behind the assassination attempt, but there’s no stopping you once your sword is out.”

Astrid wrapped Caleb in a tight hug. “You idiot,” she whispered sounding closed to tears. “You had me and Eodwulf worried sick. Don’t you dare ever do anything like that again.”

“I won’t,” Caleb said into her shoulder. Jester looked away blushing. It felt like a private moment that she was intruding in.

Astrid let go of him. “But why were you faking your own death? Was the assassin a lie too?”

“No, that part happened,” Jester said. “I punched them really good.”

Astrid looked at her like she didn’t believe Jester, but Caleb put a hand on his sister’s arm. “Relax, if it wasn’t for her, I really would be dead right now. My death was a necessary deception in order to draw out the assassin's employer."

Astrid frowned. "It doesn't appear to have worked."

"I know, but it did get you here. What did your investigation find?" he asked.

"The assassin appears to have been hired by someone high up in Nicodranas," Astrid said. Jester's stomach flipped and flopped. 

Caleb stepped forward. "Appears. And do you believe that to be the case?"

Astrid laughed. "Not for a second. It was the least subtle cover job imaginable. No, the money came from Rexxentrum." Her mood darken.

"I'm sorry," Caleb said.

"You nearly get killed and you're apologizing?" Jester asked. 

Astrid shrugged. "That's Caleb for you. Now the question is who did the hiring."

"And how many of their spies are in the room right now." Caleb looked around the room and Jester followed his gaze. It was crowded and the whole Rexxentrum party was there. Everyone appeared to be in shock, but someone from Rexxentrum was fiddling with something in their sleeve. 

"What's that?" Jester said, but Caleb and Astrid were still talking and didn't seem to hear her. The person was approaching them and quickly. "Hey!" Jester shouted out. Everyone turned towards her. "He’s got something!" There was a blade in the man's hand. And then it wasn't, instead it was flying through the air straight at Jester. She froze unable to move and her life was flashing before her eyes.

Caleb moved like a flash and got in front of Jester. The blade sunk into his chest. He fell as if in slow motion. Jester’s paralysis broke and she caught Caleb. Blood was spreading at a frightening pace from where the dagger had stabbed him. “Caleb!” 

Astrid swore loudly and picked up her sword. Captain Bryce had already caught the man who threw the blade. Everything was happening all at once now and there was nothing Jester could do but stare at Caleb bleeding in her arms.

“Caleb, Caleb, why did you do that?” Jester cried.

Caleb clumsily patted Jester on the cheek. “I can’t let anything happen to my wife.” Leaning forward, he pressed his lips to hers in a messy kiss and then collapsed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry and not sorry at the same time. The next chapter should come up in 6 to 24 hours.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is guys, the final chapter. Thanks for all your kind comments and support. You are all the best and I hope you like the ending of this fic.
> 
> Also, major content warning for this chapter. There is discussion of animal cruelty and animal death that may be too much for some of you to handle. If you know that you can't handle it but still want to read this chapter, skip the paragraph starting with "Caleb shuddered at the memory" and just know that Caleb was only able to save one out of two cats.

Caleb ached. It was frustrating. Death should hurt less he thought. Wait, dead? He tried to remember why he should be dead. There was a dagger and it was heading straight for Jester. And there was no way that Caleb was going to let her die.

He tried to get up and fell back with a groan.”Oh,” someone said. “He’s awake!” Jester. A wet cloth pressed hard against his face. “I told you he’d wake up soon.”

“Caleb! Caleb!” shouted Nott. “You’re okay!”

“Technically,” Caleb said. “What happened?”

“You were stabbed!!” Jester and Nottt shouted together.

Jester leaned forward. “It was super scary. We, I, thought you died. But you didn’t!”

“I think that would hurt less,” Caleb said with a wince. “And are you okay?”

Nott nodded. “Now that you are, yes!”

“How long have I’ve been asleep?” Caleb asked.

“Two days,” Jester said. “You’ve missed a lot. With the second assassin, they were able to prove that the King was behind it.”

Caleb snorted. “Of course he was. Where is Astrid? Is she still here?”

Jester shook her head. “She had to leave once she knew you were okay. She said there was going to be a lot of things going on in Rexxentrum. Oh, and she left you a letter.” She passed it to Caleb.

Caleb cracked open the wax seal. 

Caleb-

Thank you for not dying, but know that when I see you next you will be getting an earful from me. I wanted to stay and see you get better with my own eyes, but I have to get back to Rexxentrum. With any luck in a month’s time, Eodwulf will be on the throne. We’ve been working a long time on deposing Father and your ‘death’ moved our schedule forward by six months. I’m sorry that we never told you, but we believed that it would have just put unnecessary stress on you and that you were safer not knowing. It looks like you are much stronger and braver than either of us would have thought though.

Recuperate well.

-Astrid

Caleb set down the letter. No wonder Astrid and Eodwulf did not argue against Caleb going to Nicodranas. Rexxentrum had been long overdue for a change in power. “Did you know about what is going on in Rexxentrum?”

“Only rumors,” Jester said. “Is there really a revolution going on there?”

Caleb nodded. 

Nott stared at him with big eyes. “Is that really something that can be done? The king-”

“Is a bastard and a tyrant,” Caleb interrupted. “He slaughters and tortures his own people if he believes that it will get him what he wants.”

“Caleb?” Jester asked resting a hand on his arm.

"I had always been curious. Too curious for my own good really. And something about how my village was destroyed didn't sit right with me. Nobody could tell us what force, what country, had done it. And I could never leave anything alone. So, I read, I searched, I'd hide and listen, and I learned. It was Rexxentrum attacking one of its own village. Its own people. And worse it was ordered by the king." Caleb looked away and let out a sigh.

"I confronted the king about it and demanded to know how he could do just a heinous thing. I was 15 and believed in justice and my own indestructibility. That was the first night I was locked in a cell." Nott rested her hand on Caleb's. "The next morning I was alone with the king. He gave me a speech on how being a good ruler meant having to do cruel things for the good of the people. Then he had two boxes dragged in." 

Caleb shuddered at the memory, but he continued."Each box had a clear lid and over a dozen complicated latches and locks. They were both completely filled with water and each had a drowning cat in it. I opened the first one as fast as I could, but it took so long to open all those latches and the cat was just barely still alive when I got it out. The other cat was already dead before I even got half way through opening the second box. I finished opening it anyways. That cat didn't deserve to be left in there. The king scoffed at me wasting my time releasing it. After that, I was sent back to the cell with both cats. 

"I hated my adoptive father and myself for not being fast enough to save both cats. Astrid and Eodwulf would have saved both cats," Caleb said.

"You have no way of knowing that," Nott said. "You can't blame yourself for the king's cruelty."

Caleb snorted. "I can blame myself for my weakness."

"What did Astrid and Eodwulf do when you told them about your village? About the cats?" Jester asked.

"I never told them. The king forbade me from telling anyone and I didn’t want to burden them," Caleb said. "You two are the first I ever told."

Nott tightened her grip on Caleb's hand. 

"The cat you saved. Was it Frumpkin?" Jester asked.

Caleb shook his head. "This was nearly 17 years ago. That cat died years ago. He was, however, Frumpkin's great-grandfather."

“Are you okay?” Nott asked.

Caleb shrugged. “You don’t need to worry about me.”

“You were stabbed two days ago. I’m going to worry about you forever now,” Nott said flatly. Jester nodded in agreement.

Caleb chuckled and shook his head. “There’s no escaping either of you two is there.” He sighed. “Thank you.”

“Well, now that I know you’re okay, I’m going to leave you two alone,” Nott said. “You have a lot to talk about.”

“What?” Caleb asked. “What do you mean?”

Nott just smiled at him. “Oh, and no ripping his stitches.”

“I won’t,” Jester said with a giggle as Nott left.

“What was that about?” Caleb asked.

Jester shrugged, but she was blushing at the same time. “Um, what was the last thing you remember? I mean when you were stabbed?”

Caleb frowned and gave it some thought. “You caught me? I remember you being there and your arms.”

“And do you remember what you did?” Jester asked.

Caleb shook his head. “I took the dagger for you.”

“Right,” Jester said. She got up and paced around the room. “Caleb, what am I to you?”

“You’re,” he paused. It was an odd question that he didn’t know how to answer. “I don’t know what you mean.”

Jester brushed her hair back. “I mean, do you like me?”

“Yes, you’re charming and incredibly lovable. I’d be surprised to learn that anyone didn’t like you,” he said.

“But, how do you like me?” Jester asked.

Caleb just stared at her confused.

“You kissed me!” she blurted out. “And I don’t know if that was a you’re dying thing and it just happened or a dying one last wish thing or a confession thing or what?!”

Caleb stared at her. “I kissed you?” She nodded biting her lip. “I, I don’t know what that means either. I wish I knew what I felt for you.”

“You don’t know either?” Jester asked.

“I know that I don’t make a good husband, but I wish I could for you.”

“I don’t know if I’ve been a good wife yet either.”

Caleb shook his head. “You’ve been better than I could ever deserve. I, I think you are very easy to fall in love with.”

“What? Does that mean that you?” She didn’t quite finish her question but he knew what she meant.

“I don’t know, but I think I might soon,” Caleb said. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?” Jester asked.

“You don’t deserve to have to deal with me. You deserve someone brave and handsome like from your Tusk Love.”

Jester grabbed his hands. “You got stabbed for me. I can’t imagine anything more brave or handsome!”

“How is that handsome?” Caleb asked.

“It’s going to make a super cool scar.” Jester grinned at him. “I can tell.”

Caleb laughed and then winced in pain but it soon passed. “I’m glad you like it.” He paused and looked at her. It was funny how he could tell that she was happier than she was on her wedding day despite all that she had been through. “This is going to be a romance, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Are you okay with that?”

Jester kissed him softly on the cheek just catching the corner of his mouth. “Yeah, I am.”

“I think I am too.”


End file.
